As someone who just went through this process with my daughter, I can confirm everything that's been said here is correct! The key thing to remember is "ownership determines reporting" - since you're the legal owner of the account, it goes in your contributor section regardless of the money's intended purpose. I made a spreadsheet to track all our assets and their FAFSA treatment, and it really helped avoid confusion. Also, double-check that you're using the correct "as of" date for reporting asset values - it should be the date you sign and submit the FAFSA, not when you started filling it out. The $14,500 will only contribute about $817 to your SAI calculation at the 5.64% parent asset rate, which is much better than the $2,900 it would have added if mistakenly reported as a student asset!

Just wanted to add my experience as a financial aid counselor - this is one of the most frequently asked questions we get! The confusion is totally understandable because it seems counterintuitive. But yes, everyone here is absolutely correct: if YOU are the legal account holder, it's YOUR asset for FAFSA purposes, period. The intent doesn't matter, only legal ownership. I always tell parents this is actually a blessing in disguise because of that lower assessment rate (5.64% vs 20%). One more tip: if you have multiple children and separate savings accounts for each in your name, you'll report the TOTAL of all those accounts in your parent assets section. The FAFSA doesn't ask you to break down which money is "for" which child - it just cares about your total reportable assets as the contributor.

I just went through this process last month and wanted to share some specifics that might help! My family's situation was similar - my mom lost her job in January, about 2 months after we submitted our FAFSA. Here's what I learned that might be useful: **Documentation I needed:** - Official termination letter from her employer - Last 3 pay stubs from before the job loss (to show previous income) - Unemployment benefits award letter - Our most recent bank statements - A letter I wrote explaining the timeline and financial impact **Timing:** My school processed it in about 3.5 weeks, but I called every Friday to check status (nicely but persistently). When I mentioned my enrollment deposit deadline, they actually expedited the review. **Results:** They reduced my SAI from 16,200 to 7,800, which qualified me for about $4,000 more in federal grants plus additional institutional aid. **Pro tip:** I submitted everything via their online portal AND dropped off hard copies in person. The person at the desk gave me a receipt with the date/time stamp, which was super helpful for follow-ups. Don't give up! Job loss appeals really do have high success rates. The key is being thorough with documentation and persistent (but polite) with follow-ups. You've got this! 💪

Reading through everyone's experiences here is giving me so much hope! I'm in almost the exact same situation - my dad was laid off about 10 weeks after we submitted our FAFSA, and our family income has basically been cut in half. My original SAI was around 19,000 and there's absolutely no way we can afford that now. I've been putting off starting the appeal process because it seemed so overwhelming, but seeing all these success stories (especially @Jordan Walker's detailed breakdown) is exactly the motivation I needed. The fact that job loss appeals have such a high success rate according to @Christian Bierman makes me feel like this is actually worth pursuing instead of just giving up on my college dreams. I'm going to start gathering all the documentation everyone mentioned - termination letter, unemployment benefits, pay stubs showing the before/after income difference. The tip about submitting both online AND getting a physical receipt is genius! One quick question though - for those who were successful, did you submit your appeals before accepting your enrollment offer, or can you do this process even after you've already committed to the school? My deposit deadline is coming up and I'm not sure if I should wait for the appeal results or just commit and hope for the best. Thanks to everyone for sharing your real experiences - this thread is literally a lifesaver! 💙

I went through something very similar last semester! My school incorrectly sent a $2,100 balance to collections that I had already paid through my parent PLUS loan. What really helped speed things up was getting my congressperson's office involved. I know it sounds dramatic, but they have a direct line to the Department of Education and can push through corrections much faster than going through normal channels. I called my representative's local office, explained the situation, and they had someone from their constituent services team contact the FSA on my behalf. My FAFSA dashboard was updated within 3 business days after that. The key is framing it as an urgent educational access issue rather than just a billing dispute. Also, make sure you screenshot your current FAFSA dashboard showing the incorrect status - you'll want proof of the error timeline if there are any future complications with your aid eligibility.

I'm so sorry you're dealing with this stress right now! As someone who just went through the financial aid process myself, I can't imagine how panicked you must be feeling with registration coming up so soon. From reading all these responses, it sounds like there are several really good strategies to try. The insider info from Mateo about Form ED-1038 seems super important - I had no idea schools had to submit specific forms to different systems. And Javier's suggestion about contacting your congressperson's office is brilliant - I never would have thought of that! One thing I'm wondering - have you checked if your school has an emergency financial aid fund or hardship assistance program? Some schools can provide temporary bridge funding while situations like this get resolved, especially when it's their error. It might be worth asking your financial aid office about that as a backup plan. Really hoping this gets sorted out quickly for you! Keep us updated on what works - this thread is going to help so many people dealing with similar situations.

Update: I finally got this resolved! After trying everything suggested here, what finally worked was: 1. I had my son contact the financial aid office at the new college directly 2. They were able to manually request his FAFSA data using his SSN and DOB 3. They confirmed they could see his information even though we couldn't complete the formal "add school" process They said they're seeing this issue frequently with January 2024 FAFSA submissions and have a workaround on their end. So for anyone else facing this, go directly to the financial aid office! Thanks everyone for all your help with this frustrating situation!

This is such a relief to read! I'm a parent going through the exact same nightmare right now with my daughter's FAFSA from January 2024. We've been getting that same "form not available" error for weeks when trying to add a school for her fall transfer. I was starting to panic thinking we'd miss all the financial aid deadlines. Reading through all these responses gives me hope - I'm going to try calling the financial aid office directly tomorrow morning. It sounds like that's been the most successful approach for people. Thanks for sharing your experience and the update that it actually got resolved! Sometimes it feels like these FAFSA issues never have happy endings.

As a fellow military spouse going through the FAFSA process, I completely understand your stress! I just went through this exact situation last year with my daughter's application. A few key points that helped me navigate our veteran benefits situation: 1. Your husband's tax-free military retirement pay and SSDI both need to be reported in the "Untaxed Income" section - use the total annual amounts from your benefit statements 2. For assets, report your current bank balances as of the day you complete the FAFSA 3. You're correct that SSDI and SSI are different programs - don't report SSDI under SSI 4. Medicare and Medicaid are also different - don't report Medicare under Medicaid 5. Both parents must provide information even if one has no income One thing that really saved me stress was calling my daughter's school directly to speak with their veterans' affairs coordinator before submitting. They walked me through exactly how they wanted our benefits reported and gave me a checklist of documents to prepare for potential verification. The verification process (if selected) really isn't as scary as it sounds - we just had to provide our benefit award letters and bank statements, and it was resolved in about 2 weeks. You're being incredibly thoughtful about getting this right for your daughter, and that care will definitely pay off! Feel free to reach out if you have any other questions - military families need to support each other through these complex processes.

I'm new to this community and facing a very similar situation with my husband's VA benefits and SSDI. Reading through all these responses has been incredibly helpful and reassuring! As someone just starting this process, I wanted to thank everyone for sharing such detailed experiences. The checklist that Zane created is exactly what I needed, and the tip about contacting schools' veterans' affairs coordinators beforehand is brilliant. One question I haven't seen addressed: Has anyone dealt with reporting irregular benefit payments? My husband's VA rating was increased mid-year in 2023, so he received some back-pay that made our total benefits for that year higher than our "normal" annual amount. Should I report the actual total received in 2023 (including the back-pay) or try to calculate what our regular annual amount would be? Also, for those who went through verification - did you need to provide any documentation explaining the lump-sum payments, or were the standard benefit statements sufficient? Thank you all for creating such a supportive space for military families navigating this confusing process. It's such a relief to know we're not alone in feeling overwhelmed by the FAFSA complexities!